High street sandwich sellers must do more to offer customers vegetarian and vegan options, an environmental group has said.
Eating Better found that only 4% of over 500 sandwiches it surveyed were plant-based, meaning they did not contain meat, fish, cheese or eggs as main ingredients.
Although this represented a slight improvement on the same 2015 survey, Sue Dibb of Eating Better said that “on the whole customers seeking healthier sandwiches with a lower environmental impact are being let down with slim pickings”.
Eating Better surveyed sandwiches and wraps from four high street sandwich chains (EAT, Greggs, Pret a Manger and Subway) and eight supermarkets (Asda, Boots, Co-op, Marks & Spencer, Morrisons, Sainsbury’s, Tesco, Waitrose).
Pret a Manger and M&S scored most highly for their plant-based choices, while Greggs and Asda offered no choice for customers seeking a meat or dairy-free option.
“We’re calling on all food businesses to step up to the plate and offer a better range of delicious plant-based sandwiches made with vegetables and pulses,” added Dibb.
Pret is planning to increase vegetarian and plant-based offerings as part of its ‘Not just for veggies’ campaign, including two new vegetarian or vegan monthly chef specials during the summer, as well as trialling 40 newly developed products in an all-vegetarian pop-up shop in June.
